


Only Human

by MidnightMasked



Series: Steel and Black Silk [1]
Category: Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles (TV 2012)
Genre: F/M, Hints of Leonardo/OC
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2014-08-09
Updated: 2014-10-22
Packaged: 2018-02-12 12:02:59
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 7
Words: 14,952
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/2109192
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/MidnightMasked/pseuds/MidnightMasked
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Gwendolyn Lee's life hasn't always been favorable. Growing up in an orphanage, being abandoned by the only father figure she had in her life has done things to her, things that she doesn't think can be fixed. But when her college roommate, April O'Neil, invites her to spend Summer Break in New York, Gwen starts to think that this time will be different. Until she's attacked by the Foot Clan and she realizes who exactly April's secret friends are. Gwen's life turns upside down, and the sudden appearance of a familiar face brings up old, bitter memories. Will Gwen be able to survive in this new world of steel and black silk? Or will she just fade away into the brickwork, just another human in the Turtle's collection?</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. A Not-So-Well-Kept Secret

**Author's Note:**

> I hope you guys enjoy! This is my first fanfic on this site, so I'm still getting used to everything. Feel free to leave feedback so I can continue to make my stories grow.

Gwen sighed as she exited the elevator that she had taken to her to her dorm floor. Her brain felt like it was on fire, and her temples pounded with an impending migraine. But she was relieved. Her two most frustrating and important finals were done and over with, and she had a couple days rest before she had to deal with her last few. Night had already fallen when she had finished her Music Theory final, and she had been starving. She hoped that her roommate, April O’Neil, had not eaten the last of the ramen they had bought the week before.

Even from just a few doors away, Gwen could hear April’s voice. She seemed to be talking to someone, either on the phone or on video chat. Probably one of those mystery friends that she refuses to talk about, she thought.

Gwen had learned about these “mystery friends” a few weeks after she and April became roommates. She would constantly talk to them on her turtle-themed cell phone or video chat with them on her laptop when she thought Gwen wasn’t paying attention. And when she couldn’t do that, she was texting them. From what Gwen gathered, there were four of them. Donnie was the one she talked to most, and seemed to share the same interests with April. Gwen had caught other names, too, but Donnie had been the one that stuck. 

What confused Gwen the most, though, was that April refused to talk about her friends when Gwen tried to speak about them. Every time she brought them up, April would somehow manage to change the subject to something else. Gwen would only notice the change a while later, and would be amazed that her roommate had such a way with words that she could change Gwen’s train of thought in the blink of an eye.

She had to remember to ask April to teach her that trick one day.

Gwen couldn’t help smiling as April’s laugh filled the air while she unlocked the door to their dorm. She walked in, and saw the ginger sitting cross legged on her bed, laptop perched on her knees and a mug of steaming tea resting on text book next to her. 

“-let me guess, Raph overdid it again and had to stay home?”

“And threw a complete hissy fit about it, yeah.”

April dissolved into a fit of giggles, and finally looked up when Gwen shut the door behind her. Gwen waved, smiling over her exhaustion. 

“Oh, hold on. My roommate’s here.” April whispered to the laptop. 

While Gwen took her shoes off at the door, she pretended not to see April try to subtly plug in her earbuds into her laptop, pressing a finger to her lips to whoever she had been talking to in the video call.

Like that’s going to keep me from asking, Gwen thought sarcastically.

“Hey, how’d it go?” April asked, smiling at Gwen as a welcome. “You took longer than you said you would. I was getting worried.”

“I know, I’m sorry.” Gwen mumbled, flopping face first onto her own bed and hugged her pillow close against her chest. “I could have studied more for Ancient Japanese Culture, and my professor was late to Music Theory. Again.”

April scoffed, her blue eyes flicking to her laptop screen briefly as if someone had spoken on the other end. “You’d think they’d fire him by now.”

Gwen shrugged, blowing a lock of dark brown hair out of her gray eyes. “I still took the final, so it doesn’t matter.” She pushed herself up onto her elbow. “What about you? How’d your finals go?”

April gave a half shrug, turning to her laptop to type something in. Sending an instant message to her friend? “Everything went fine. I suppose I did okay.”

Gwen snorted. “Just okay? April, you’ve never gotten anything lower than an A in your life. I’m sure you passed with flying colors.”

Suddenly, the sound of something loud crashing against the floor, followed by voices yelling exploded from the earbuds. There was screaming and arguing, like someone was getting in trouble. Gwen raised an eyebrow while April watched the screen, an annoyed expression on her face. 

“What’s going on?” Gwen asked, sitting up on her bed. Whatever was going on sounded like it was causing a lot of damage. Maybe if she got a little closer, she could at least see the reflection of the screen in April’s eyes. “Are your secret friends arguing or something?”

April’s head snapped up, blue eyes wide and surprised. She quickly snapped her laptop shut, wincing when she realized how hard she had actually closed the device. “Secret friends? What are you talking about?”

Gwen sighed and lay back down on her bed, shifting so she was on her back. There she went again, pretending that she had no clue what Gwen was talking about. “Stop playing stupid, O’Neil. You were talking to those friends of yours that you refuse to speak to me about when I walked in. You said something about Raph getting hurt, and that Donnie kid you were talking to said he had a fit or something. That’s what I heard when I opened the door.”

April sighed, and set her laptop aside. She tilted her head, and looked at Gwen with an exasperated expression. “The only one throwing a fit will be my dad if you don’t come and spend Summer Break with us. You know how much he’s wanted to meet you.” April said, her tone changing from defensive to teasing.

Gwen paused, then smacked her palm against her forehead. How could she have forgotten about April’s invitation? “I’m sorry! I totally forgot about it while I was stressing about my finals. Yes, I’ll come to New York with you.”

April smiled, the corners of her eyes wrinkling; a sign that she was truly happy about the outcome of her little reminder. “Thanks, Gwen. You’ll love it there, I promise.”

“I’m sure I will.” Gwen grinned, and stood up from her bed. “Do we have anymore ramen left?”

April gestured to the cupboard where they kept their snacks, and Gwen got up to go look through it. There was one more cup of instant ramen left, and the sight of it made Gwen’s stomach growl loudly. She grabbed the cup and put her shoes back on.

“I’ll be back.” She said, glancing over her shoulder at April. The redhead nodded, attention now locked back on her laptop, and Gwen walked out of their dorm room to make her way towards the commons room. 

There was hardly anybody out and about despite it only being nine o’clock at night. Since it was a Friday, the light’s out curfew was lifted until midnight. This let the students hang out, watch movies or play video games together in the commons or visit each other’s dorms later. But when Gwen walked into the commons so she could use one of the microwaves, there was only three other people, all gathered around the TV watching some sort of documentary on African wildlife. Gwen wasn’t bothered by it much; everyone was probably so exhausted after their finals that they went to bed early. She couldn’t blame them; after she ate her ramen she would go to bed as well. Maybe April would even go to sleep early too tonight, instead of staying up late studying or texting her-

Gwen stopped her train of thought, a bubble of annoyance building up in her chest. April had done it again. She had distracted Gwen from asking about those friends of hers by saying her Dad wanted Gwen to visit. She mentally smacked her forehead, and leaned against the counter while her ramen cooked. How was April able to do it? Did she have some sort of secret power Gwen didn’t know about?

The microwave dinged, and Gwen carefully removed the steaming cup of ramen. She wrapped it up in a couple paper towels to keep her hands from getting burned, waved to the three other students that were watching the documentary, and exited the commons. 

There had to be a way to get April to talk about these people she hung out with. Gwen knew that if she told anybody else about this situation, they’d tell her that she was crazy for wanting to know everything about her roommate’s personal life. But that wasn’t the case. April was allowed her secrets, and so was Gwen. But after Winter Break ended and they were back in school, Gwen had noticed that April’s arms had been covered in bruises, and her right arm had been in a brace. There were even traces of old cuts still healing that were covered with makeup. Gwen didn’t buy the story that she had fallen down a flight of stairs just days before school began again. Gwen was what some people could call an expert on skin surfaced wounds when it came to bruises. They were all consistent with sparring. Rigorous sparring. If April took martial arts lessons, that was fine. But her bruises and cuts were from people much stronger, much more skilled than she was. 

Gwen didn’t know the full story, so she didn’t know if April was getting in trouble with those friends of hers, or if they were hurting her in someway and she was too afraid to tell anybody, but Gwen was determined to find about. Maybe going to New York City would make things easier for Gwen to get April to talk about it. 

Gwen reached into her pocket as she got closer to her dorm room. She dug around for her keys until she realized she had left them on her desk inside. She sighed, and knocked on the door. “April? I’m locked out again. Could you let me in, please?”

She half expected April to ask for the secret password again (there was no secret password; April just liked to screw with Gwen sometimes), but after a few moments when April murmured a quick goodbye to her video chat partner, she opened the door to let Gwen in. 

After her ramen was eaten and she had gotten ready for bed, Gwen lay under the covers, trying to get to sleep. Thoughts of New York City and Summer Break floated through her head. She had never been that far out of Brooklyn, so she had no idea what to expect. All she knew about New York she had learned from television and movies. And on top of that, April’s friends were there. It was all Gwen could do to not jumble her thoughts over what ifs and possibilities. She sighed and rolled over, pressing her face into her pillow. There was no use in worrying about it now. All Gwen could do was sleep, and hopefully her mind would be clearer the next morning.


	2. Family Home

New York was loud, dirty, and crowded. At least in the daytime. Gwen couldn’t really get a grasp on how many people actually lived in the Big Apple. It was like a never ending stream of people that continued farther than the eye could see, clogging the streets and sidewalks in masses.

“So...you don’t live in the middle of all this, do you?” Gwen asked, turning to glance at April, who sat in the driver’s seat of the small, deep purple Nissan. “I don’t think I’d be able to sleep with all this noise.” Not to mention the growing feeling of claustrophobia growing in the pit of her stomach. She already felt like she was trapped between the buildings on either side of the street.

April laughed, and shook her head. “No, I live just outside of all this, in a suburb. Trust me, it’s a lot quieter there.”

Gwen nodded, feeling relieved that she wouldn’t have to mess with all the noise that the inner city was infamous for. She watched the buildings go by, feeling small beneath the massive skyscrapers. They towered over her like giants, like steel and concrete pillars that held the blue sky up. After a few more moments, she looked away, feeling slightly dizzy from craning her neck so far to catch even a small glimpse at the very tops of the buildings.

As they continued to travel through the city, the buildings became shorter and the amount of people milling around the streets and sidewalks slowly thinned out until Gwen only saw a couple people out every now and then. The sun had begun to sink, turning the sky with gold and purple hues, the clouds burning with reds and pinks. Only the very middle of the sky remained blue, and even that was fading fast.

“Dad should be home by the time we get there,” April said, turning down a neighborhood road. “I’ll warn you in advance: he’ll probably talk your ear off.”

Gwen laughed. “That’s alright. I’ll be happy to talk about anything other than school or finals for the next two and a half months.”

April snorted. “Tell me about it. I cringe every time I hear the word ‘study’,” as if to prove her point, April cringed, her jaw tightening and her eyes squinting halfway shut. “Ow. See?”

“Oh, yeah, I totally see what you mean.” Gwen said, rolling her eyes playfully. 

Soon enough, April pulled her small Nissan up to her dad’s flat just as the sun dipped below the horizon, casting the entire world into a violet twilight. Gwen got out of the car and grabbed what luggage she brought, and followed April inside.

The place was quaint. It was small, just large enough for two people to live in comfortably. It had homey touches here and there; pictures of April when she was younger, drawings and school papers with good grades still pinned to the fridge with multicolored magnets. Gwen smiled, turning around in a small circle to take it all in. The flat reminded her of one of the foster homes she spent time in. It had been her favorite, even if she had to share her room with two other foster girls. The mother had been nice, always making meals and giving the foster kids cookies and other treats. 

A picture caught Gwen’s attention while April called for her father. She walked towards where it rested on a small bookcase, and saw that it was a family photo. It was a relatively old photo, since April looked like she was just a baby in it. What caught Gwen’s eye was the woman that held baby April. She was brunette, and had kind eyes, and the type of smile that would calm any worry. Even if April had gotten her father’s hair and eye color, she had every bit of her mother’s facial features. Right down to the kind smile.

The sound of April sighing brought Gwen out of her thoughts. She turned around, seeing the ginger standing in the middle of the room with her hands on her hips. 

“He said he’d be here.” April grumbled, turning to face Gwen. 

“Maybe he hit some traffic.” Gwen suggested, shrugging. “Don’t be mad at him, I’m sure he’s on his way.”

April sighed again. “Yeah, you’re right. Come on, I’ll show you to your room and then we can order some takeout.”

By the time the takeout arrived, Gwen had moved all of the belongings she had brought into the guest room, storing her clothes in the closet and dresser while spreading around her personal belongings, such as her laptop, an antique Japanese incense burner that she would most definitely ask permission to use before actually lighting it, and a picture of her and her old sensei, Jun Kimura. Before she placed the framed photo on the bedside table, she gently touched the glass over the man’s face, a faint smile on her lips. 

“Miss you, sensei...” she said softly, and carefully put the photo on the table.

Gwen looked up at the sound of the front door opening and closing, followed by April squealing and a man laughing. She straightened her shorts and smoothed her hair back before walking out of the room, smiling at the sight of her roommate hugging her father in the middle of the living room.

“How was your trip?” Mr. O’Neil asked, shifting his daughter until he held her at arm’s length. “It was safe? Nothing happened?”

April shook her head. “Our trip was fine, Dad, I promise. You don’t have to worry about me so much.”

“Oh, humor the man,” Gwen said with a smile, walking towards the two redheads. “Appreciate the doting while you can.” Gwen turned her gaze to Mr. O’Neil and held out her hand. “It’s nice to meet you, sir.”

Mr. O’Neil shook Gwen’s hand with vigor, a large smile on his face. “Very nice to meet you, Gwendolyn. April has told me so much about you.”

“Oh, just call me Gwen. Gwendolyn is such a mouthful.” Gwen smiled. “And I hope she hasn’t told you too much, like how I sometimes snore in my sleep.” 

April rolled her eyes at the joke. “Come on, Dad. If you keep shaking her hand, her arm will fall off. I’ve got takeout in the kitchen if you want some.”

Mr. O’Neil let go of Gwen’s hand and straightened up. “Takeout sounds lovely, April. Thank you.”

It was nice to sit down and have a family meal. It had been so long since Gwen had sat at a dinner table with other people and jabbed over the meal, she had almost forgotten what it was like. She laughed at Mr. O’Neil’s jokes and told stories about college with April, losing track of time in the process. By the time dinner was actually finished, it was almost ten at night. 

“Golly, it’s late.” Mr. O’Neil said, stretching his above his head. “I think I’ll hit the hay.” He bent to give April a kiss on the forehead, then patted Gwen’s shoulder. “Good night, girls.”

April smiled at her father, and when he disappeared into his room, she flopped onto the couch with a sigh, her smile disappearing.

“Well, he seems very nice.” Gwen said, settling herself next to April. 

“He’s paranoid.” April mumbled. “He knew that our drive would be perfectly safe, and yet he asked about it anyway like he anticipated us being attacked on the road.”

“That’s what dads do, April.” Gwen said, pulling her legs up to curl against her chest. “They worry about their little girls.”

April grumbled something, then looked up at Gwen. “He really likes you, Gwen. I hope you have fun here.”

Gwen smiled, and wrapped an arm around her friend’s shoulders to give her a quick squeeze. “Of course I’ll have fun here. Maybe you and I can go explore town and stuff during the day, and at night we can have movie marathons and throw popcorn at each other.”

April laughed. “Sounds like a plan.”

Gwen grinned, then stood, yawning. “I think I’ll go to bed, too. I’m still exhausted from finals.”

April nodded. “The bathroom is the first door on the right, and towels should be in the linen closet at the end of the hall.”

After taking a quick shower and changing into her pajamas, Gwen stayed up a little while longer, sitting on her bed while enjoying a cool night breeze flowing in through the open window. She sat cross legged with her laptop perched on her legs, checking her emails and looking through a class list she would be choosing her next semester’s classes from. The aroma of burning incense filled the room, calming her from the day’s events. Mr. O’Neil had been completely fine with Gwen burning the incense, telling her that April did the same thing every now and then.

I learn something new every day, she thought. Never took April for the zen type. 

After half an hour had passed, Gwen finally closed her laptop and began pulling back the covers of the bed. A sudden tingling feeling made her glance up at the window. For a moment, she thought she saw someone standing on the rooftop across the street. She blinked, and squinted her eyes so she could get a better look, but whatever had been there was gone. Gwen stood there for a moment more, then carefully blew out the incense burner. She turned off the lamp, and settled into the sheets of the guest bed. She closed her eyes, and was just about to fall asleep when the tingling feeling came back. She slowly opened her eyes, and saw the same figure standing on the rooftop again. Her eyes slid shut again, her mind dismissing what she saw as the moonlight playing tricks on her.

But outside, the figure didn’t move. It stayed there for a while, watching her. It tilted her head as the faint smell of incense reached it, then turned to walk away.

They’d be watching this one very closely.


	3. Disappearing Act

By the time the sun was rising in the sky, Gwen was already out of bed. She had changed out of her pajamas into a pair of yoga tights and a tank top. The bedroom window was wide open, letting in the cool morning air as well as the distant sounds of city life. It all faded into an almost silent buzz as Gwen stood in the middle of the bedroom, breathing deeply while she practiced tai chi. Even after her sensei had gone back to Japan, she still practiced everything he had taught her. Tai chi wasn’t something that just calmed her down, it was a martial art that centered her core, gave her almost something like a sixth sense if she allowed herself to retreat to her center.

Gwen’s eyes snapped open at the sound of the front door slamming shut, startling her out of her peaceful concentration. She poked her head out of her door, and saw that April’s purse was missing, along with her old worn boots that she wore practically every day.

“Did April go somewhere?” Gwen asked Mr. O’Neil as she walked into the living room.

Mr. O’Neil looked up from his newspaper. “She said something came up with a few of her friends. She should be back in a couple of hours.”

Gwen deflated, feeling disappointed that April hadn’t thought to include her. “Oh...okay.” She turned back around and retreated back to the guestroom, shutting the door softly behind her. Of course April would want to go spend time with her other friends, it was only natural to do so. And Gwen couldn’t blame her. If these were the same friends that April had actively avoided telling her about, Gwen should have expected this more. But she couldn’t help but feel just a little left out. April had invited Gwen into her home for the entire summer. To just leave without saying anything...

It doesn’t matter, Gwen told herself as she made her bed. She has a life outside of you. Take this time to get to know this place.

So she did. After eating a quick breakfast and changing into a clean tank top and cut off shorts, she took a quick walk around the surrounding neighborhood, stopping at the nearest fast food restaurant to grab Mr. O’Neil and herself some lunch on her way back. 

A couple hours passed, and April was still out. Gwen distracted herself from calling her friend by marathoning a show on Netflix while eating popcorn in her room. Dinner time arrived, and Mr. O’Neil had to run to the lab for something that came up. So Gwen was left alone. She ordered some pizza and ate a few slices before putting the leftovers in the fridge for when April and her father came home. The sun set, casting the world in a golden glow for a few short moments before finally slipping below the skyline, casting dark shadows across the buildings and streets. 

Gwen was still watching Netflix when April finally came home at around nine pm. She looked exhausted, but a bright, contented smile made her entire face glow with happiness. Gwen had never seen her roommate that happy before. Not even when April found out that she had passed all her exams with flying colors.

“Hey. There’s some pizza in the fridge if you’re hungry.” Gwen said from the couch, watching April tug her boots off at the entryway. 

“I had pizza for lunch.” April replied, hanging her bag on a hook. “I’ll probably just have some cereal.”

Gwen shrugged, and turned her attention back to her laptop. “Your dad said you’d be gone only a couple hours. Did something happen?”

April walked into the kitchen, grabbing a glass bowl along with a box of cereal that was loaded with sugar. “I got caught up, that’s all. I should have called when I realized I would be late.”

Gwen shrugged again, trying to make it seem that she hadn’t been out of sorts the entire day due to her friend’s disappearance. “It’s fine, April. I need to remind myself that I’m not your only friend,” she grinned over her shoulder. “That would just be sad.”

April laughed and brought her bowl of cereal into the living room, sitting down next to Gwen with a sigh. That was when Gwen noticed something up with April’s gate, like she was limping. She seemed to be favoring her right ankle, which looked like it had been wrapped up with dark brown gauze. Gwen narrowed her eyes, and leaned down to get a closer look.

“Did you always have that on your ankle?” she asked, looking over at April.

April looked up from her cereal, then glanced down at her foot. Gwen could see the gears work in her roommate’s head, trying to think of a response to her question.

“I tripped and fell this morning,” April finally said, stirring her cereal around the bowl. “Twisted my ankle, nothing serious.”

“Huh,” Gwen crossed her arms, her eyebrows furrowing together in mock confusion. “Weird. I didn’t hear anything this morning, and I was up pretty early.”

“Well...the walls are pretty thick here.”

Gwen nodded, playing April’s game. “Uh huh, I see. Then again, I did hear the front door slam pretty loudly when you left. But I’m sure you have an excuse for that, too.”

April’s blue eyes narrowed. “What are you talking about? I’m not making up excuses.”

“That’s bull, and you know it.” Gwen argued, sitting up straighter on the couch. She couldn’t stay quiet any longer. She had to say something. “You can’t keep playing dumb forever, April. You have these friends that you talk to all the time that you refuse to talk to me about even though you know I’ve heard you talk to them on the phone and on the video chatting system on your laptop. And don’t you dare try to say that you haven’t; I’ve walked in on plenty of your conversations.”

Gwen stood now, her fists clenched at her sides. “What do you do with these people? When you came back from Christmas Vacation, you had bruises all over your body, like you had been fighting someone! Heck, you even tried covering them up with makeup, and that just made them worse!” April tried to say something, but Gwen cut her off by raising her hand sharply. “And then these conversations turn into your friends over doing it and having to stay home? And you come home with a twisted ankle? I’m starting to think that these are people you shouldn’t be involved with!”

Gwen didn’t know that she had been yelling until she paused, staring down at April. The redhead said nothing, but she seemed to be struggling to keep her mouth shut. Gwen let out a harsh sigh, and lifted her hands to roughly run them through her dark hair.

“But these people, whoever they are...I’ve seen them make you so happy, too. So, so happy. Happier than I had ever seen you in the entire time of us living with each other...” she trailed off, then sighed again. “I don’t know what the situation is with you and these people, but I want to meet them. You’re my best friend, I just want to know that you’re safe...”

The silence that followed was deafening. Gwen stood there, finally coming down from the high her little speech had given her and realized that April could very well now think very little of her. Gwen probably just made herself to look like an obsessed freak who was jealous over a part of April’s life that she wasn’t part of. She sighed, and ran a hand through her hair again.

“You know what?” she started backing up. “Forget it. I’m sorry...” she turned around, wanting to just go lock herself in the guest bedroom and never come out.

“Wait, Gwen.” Gwen turned around at April’s voice. The redhead was standing now, too, her mouth opening and closing as if she was trying to find the right words to explain her thoughts.

“I...I know I haven’t been fair to you,” April began. “And you have no idea how bad I feel for it.” She tugged at her ponytail, and sighed. “There are things in this world that most people aren’t supposed to know. My relationship with my friends is complicated, and so is trying to explain the whole thing.” April bit her lip, then smiled. “I promise I’ll explain everything one of these days, okay? Don’t think that I would hide things from you because of some selfish need, alright? It’s not like that at all.”

Gwen nodded, a finding a little relief in April’s vague but seemingly honest confession. “I didn’t think that. After you came back from Winter Break with those bruises, and after I saw your ankle, I got worried.”

April snorted. “Do I really seem like the kind of girl that would get involved with that type of thing, Gwen?”

“No, not at all!” Gwen replied, laughing. “That’s why I got worried!”

April rolled her eyes, then sobered. “I’ll tell you everything soon, okay? I promise.”

“Okay.” Gwen nodded. That’s all she wanted. To know that April was okay. “Hey, if you don’t have any plans on disappearing tomorrow, do you want to go out and explore? I saw this club while I was walking around the other day.”

April nodded. “Yeah, I should be able to...maybe.”

“That doesn’t sound very convincing.”

April sighed. “Like I said, it’s complicated.”

***

But the next day, April had disappeared again. Gwen had expected it, knew that April would be gone by morning. But she kept her phone close by, in case the redhead would call ahead of time to say she would still go out that night. Mr. O’Neil had been gone a lot, too, so that left Gwen home alone most of the day. 

By the time the sun had set and it began to get dark out, Gwen decided that she wasn’t going to wait any longer. She wasn’t upset at April, but she wasn’t going to wait and sit cooped up in the apartment any longer. So she did her hair up into a curly ponytail, put on a wine red blouse and black leggings and her good flats, and left a note for both the O’Neils that she would be out, leaving the name of the club she had told April about and the time she expected she should be home. She grabbed her purse, made sure she had her phone and the set of spare keys that Mr. O’Neil had given her, and headed out.

The night was nice; not too hot, not too cold. There were a lot of younger people out that seemed to have the same idea as Gwen, but most of them were in groups. Gwen could hear their laughter from down the street, echoing off the tall buildings, making it seem like their voices were everywhere. Even the tops of the buildings.

Gwen stopped in her tracks. There was that tingling feeling again, starting at the back of her scalp and slowly making it’s way down to the base of her spine. Someone was watching her. She glanced around, thinking that one of the groups had stopped their trek towards their destination and was now whispering about her for some odd reason. But all the groups she had seen were already farther down the street. But the voices were still whispering, the words sounding harsh and quick, like an argument. But Gwen could see no one in the immediate vicinity. Unless...

April always told her that New Yorkers never look up. But Gwen wasn’t a New Yorker. So she did exactly what her mind was telling her not to:

She looked up.

For a split second, she saw nothing. Then, the fluttering of a piece of fabric caught her attention, and she squinted her eyes so she could get a better look. Five figures stood on the rooftop across the street from her, watching her. Just like she thought had happened her first night in town. She couldn’t see exactly what they looked like, but their eyes stood out in the darkness, catching the light from the nearby streetlamp and shining white. She turned her whole body to face them, and took a deep breath so she could call out to them. 

Then, as if they were made of smoke, they were gone. One second there, the next Gwen was looking at empty air. The breath she had sucked in blew out of her lungs in a long sigh. She wasn’t going crazy. She had seen those figures, whoever they were. But there was nothing she could do about it now. They were gone and it was more than likely that she would never see them again, despite the fact that the tingling feeling in her spine had grown stronger, like more people were watching now.

She turned away from the building, and was just about to start walking again when she caught sight of three men walking her way. They looked ragged, their clothes ripped and torn. But she could see something on the vests they wore; a purple dragon.

Gwen’s heart dropped into her stomach. April had said that the Purple Dragons were just a stupid gang that was hardly a threat to anybody, unless there was more than one. April had also said that there shouldn’t be anything to worry about, too. The Purple Dragons were rare these days...didn’t she also say something about a group of highly specialized agents putting a stop to their activities?

Either way, the three men were getting closer and closer to her, the leader grinning darkly as his eyes locked on her. Gwen backed up a few paces, then spun on her heel. There was an alleyway to her left that she could hopefully duck down and take as a shortcut back to the apartment. Gwen quickly walked down the alley, hoping that her dark clothing would help her melt into the shadows. She pressed herself against the brick wall, her heart pounding in her chest.

Please, go away, she thought. Please, just go away.

“Well, well. Look what we have here, boys.”


	4. Saviors

There were seven of them in total. They had surrounded her the moment the leader, a tall man with olive toned skin and red rimmed eyes made a grab for her. She had managed to jump out of his reach, her nerve endings on fire and adrenaline now pumping freely through her bloodstream. Her fingers were tingling, and her mind had focused into an almost icy clarity that made every detail around her stand out, including the small vein pulsing in the leader’s temple.

“Listen,” Gwen choked out, lifting a hand with her palm facing outwards. It was a futile attempt at keeping some distance between her and the thugs, but it made her feel safer. “You _really_ don’t want to do this.”

“Oh, and why’s that?” the leader crooned, tilting his head to the side. The men around her chuckled greedily. One of them let his eyes roam from the top of her head to the tips of her toes. Her gut twisted violently in her stomach, but she forced down the bile that was steadily rising in her throat.

“There are people everywhere out here,” Gwen said. “They’ll hear me scream...”

“Oh, I highly doubt that. When the Dragons are involved, people tend to look the other way.” The leader smirked, tilting his head up so he looked down his nose at Gwen, like he was smelling something foul.

_Okay_ , Gwen thought. _So that approach didn’t work_.

“You don’t want to do this,” she repeated. “I don’t want to hurt you.” Already her muscles were bunching and coiling in her legs and arms, the inner martial artist within her just _begging_ to be let loose.

_Not yet_ , she thought to herself. _Give them one more chance_.

The thugs as a group laughed, a couple even doubling over and holding their stomachs. The leader wiped a tear from his eye, his face flushed from his obvious amusement. “Listen, little girl,” he said. “I’m not normally amused by people like you, but you’ve put me in a good mood. Tell you what,” he took a step forward. “I’ll make sure that pretty face of yours is spared.”

Gwen watched as the leader nodded to another one of the thugs. This one, a stocky man with short red hair and a tattoo of a dragon on his upper arm, began to stalk towards her. Gwen glared at him, shifting her left arm until her purse slipped off her shoulder and onto the ground. The man licked his lips, and reached out for her.

In a split second, Gwen grabbed his wrist and upper arm, twisting the man around until he was forced to his knees.

“I bend your elbow any farther, and it’ll snap in half,” Gwen explained, her voice eerily calm despite the situation she was in. “I pull up on your shoulder, and it’ll pop out of it’s socket.” She glanced up at the group around her, trying to find any weak points in their formation. “I don’t want to hurt you,” she continued. “But if you still think this is a good idea, I will not hesitate to take you down.”

There was a moment’s pause where all the thugs were frozen in place, all of their muscles taught. Gwen was waiting as well, the muscles in her stomach already coiled to spring while her arms and legs were relaxed. It did no good to be on edge in the face of danger. That was first lesson she had learned as a young student. Fear and anxiety clouded the mind. It was better to have a clear mind in the face of danger.

With a shout, a third thug ran towards Gwen, his fist raised and aimed for her face. Gwen ducked, forcing the thug in her grasp to bend farther towards the ground. She lashed out with her foot, catching the second thug on the back of his knee and making him stumble forward. Then, she threw the thug that she held towards the second, causing the two to fall into a heap on the ground.

As Gwen straightened, a flash of silver caught her eye. She turned, and managed to duck just in time before the leader’s dagger could sink into her chest. The remaining thugs now held knives, clubs, and the leader held both a blade and a gun. The gun, a small thing that looked powerful enough to easily kill her at point blank, was aimed directly at her forehead.

“Big mistake, little girl.” The leader growled. “It’s too bad things had to go down this way. I _might_ have allowed you to live.”

“I doubt that.” Gwen replied, lifting her hands and clenching her fists, dropping into a defensive stance. She should have run when she had the chance. Maybe April would find her body.

Suddenly, five figures dropped into the alley way, seemingly out of thin air. They formed a barrier around Gwen, all holding weapons that made the small knives the Dragons held look like toys. They alley way was too dark for Gwen to see properly, but she was _positive_ that four of them had a very un-human-like form to them. What was the bulky thing they were wearing on their backs?

“Get down!” a voice shouted, and a firm hand pushed her to the ground. Gwen grunted, her chin grinding into the pavement before the hand released her and jumped into the sudden fray that pulsed around her. There was a moment where she started to push herself up, wanting to fight off her attackers, but the sound of a gun going off almost right next to her ear made her duck back down again.

The five figures had formed a small circle around her, shielding her from the thugs. The closest one, a young woman by the way her black clothing clung to her body, held a tessen in her hand. She seemed very capable of using it, her grip firm and unyielding. Gwen had never trained with tessen, but she had always loved that something so beautiful and unseeming could cause so much damage.

The young woman cried out, and Gwen looked back up just in time to see her forearm get cut by one of the blade-wielding thugs. She took a small moment to assess the damage, blood shining silver under the moonlight. Then, with a loud cry, she spun, whipping her leg out in a wide arc, quickly landing a blow to the side of the thug’s head.

In reality, only a few seconds had passed, but to Gwen it felt like an eternity. Goose bumps prickled her arms as she watched the figures dance and dodge around her. She had only seen martial arts masters fight once in her lifetime, and that had been years ago. To see it again made her want to know exactly who these people were. Maybe they had known her sensei. They seemed to have the same type of fighting style that she had seen her master use.

“Leave!” the same voice from before shouted, and Gwen realized it was coming from the figure that was wielding the double katanas. “Now!”

There was no pause as the thugs scrambled up, helping a couple of the others up as well before sprinting as fast as they could out of the alleyway. Gwen pushed herself to her feet, dusting her pants off and rubbing at her sore chin. She’d be bruised in the morning.

The five figures, now with their weapons sheathed, backed into the shadows so only their eyes were visible. They seemed to be wearing some type of mask.

“Are you alright?” the same voice said, his shadowy figure shifting a little in the darkness.

Gwen nodded. “I think so...thank you. I should have run when I had the chance.”

There was a scoff, and another figured muttered, “Yeah, no kidding.”

Another voice hissed something too quiet for Gwen to hear, and the sound of a fist hitting something hard reached her ears. Two figures began scuffling behind the one that had spoken to her, grunts and whispered curses adding to the noise until the leader barked an order.

“ _Enough_!”

The word had been quiet, but Gwen caught the whispered Japanese. The two arguing figures stilled, the one of the right punching the other on the shoulder once more for good measure.

_Well, this night just keeps getting weirder and weirder_ , she thought.

“So you’re not hurt?” the leader asked, and when Gwen shook her head, he sighed. “Good.” He took a step forward, until he was just at the edge of the shadows. He towered over Gwen by a few inches; he was at least six feet tall. She could feel his breath hit her face, and it smelled oddly like pizza. But the strangest part was that he didn’t look as human as she thought he was.

_What are you_? she thought.

“You need to forget everything you saw here,” the strange figure said, his voice rumbling in her chest. “Forget the thugs, forget us. Don’t come looking for us. You’ll be much safer if you stay away.”

“Can I at least know your names?” Gwen asked, taking a step forward. But just as her foot was planted firmly on the ground, the closest figures; the ones that had looked so inhuman, were gone, replaced by empty air. The only one left was the woman, who was clutching at her injured arm.

Gwen and the young woman stared at one another for a few moments, their eyes locking through the shadows. “Please,” Gwen whispered. “I just want to know...” The woman flinched, as if Gwen had stirred up some old memory that was painful to her. Then, just like the others, she was gone, too.

***

Gwen’s lungs were burning by the time she got back to the O’Neil’s home. She had sprinted all the way from the alley, retracing her steps from at least two blocks away. She ran inside, slammed the door behind her, and leaned against it while she caught her breath. Her legs were shaking so badly they hardly were able to support her weight, and her heart felt like it was about to grind its way through her ribs.

“April?” she called, pushing herself off of the door after a few moments. She started towards her friend’s room, pausing every few steps to steady her shaking legs. “April, are you home?”

Gwen opened the door to April’s room, and saw the red head sitting on her bed, messing with something around her forearm. April looked up, and instantly sat up straighter, her hands going into her lap.

“Hey!” April greeted, putting on a wide smile. Gwen didn’t say anything. Instead, she just leaned in the doorway, shaking and panting. April’s smile faded, and she slowly stood. “Are you okay? What happened?”

“I got-” Gwen coughed a little, her throat raw from running so fast. “I got cornered by the Purple Dragons.”

“Oh, my gosh! Are you okay, did they hurt you?”

Gwen shook her head, lifting a hand to run her fingers through her hair. “No, they didn’t. But they had knives and guns; I thought I was a goner.”

April gave Gwen a quick once over, then locked eyes with her; blue locked onto grey. “How did you escape?”

“I didn’t!” Gwen cried, lifting her hands into the air. “There were too many! Right before they were able to get any sort of hit on me, these five...ninjas or something landed in the alley way. They _fought_ them off! And the weirdest part was, _four of them didn’t look human_.”

April stared at Gwen for a moment, then sighed. “Listen, Gwen. You probably saw something in the dark during the attack. It was probably the adrenaline in your system, making you see things. It was probably just a group of good samaritans looking out for the Purple Dragons or something.”

Gwen glared, her fists clenching at her sides. “I know what I saw, April. Four of those guys weren’t human. I don’t know what they were, but there was something off about them.” She pushed herself off of the doorway and turned to walk down the hallway. “One way or another,” she called over her shoulder. “I’m going to find those guys. I don’t care if they said to forget about them. _No one_ could forget anything like that.”


	5. Shell Shocked

Gwen hardly slept for the next few days, trying to find anything she could on the mysterious figures that had saved her life. Despite the multiple rumors she had found on forums, there weren’t many official reports on ninjas in New York; except for one. It was a short news report, ending with a photo of a throwing star found at a crime scene. It wasn’t much, but it was all she had to go by.

But by that weekend, her searching had come to a screeching halt. Gwen growled in frustration and slammed her laptop shut, lifting her hands to rub frustratingly at her scalp. Her hair tumbled into her face, her breath making the strands flutter in front of her lips. There had to be more than just a single news story and little rumors floating around on the web. There had to be video of these people, or at the very least, a _picture_. If not by a victim, then the thugs must have managed to get some sort of evidence.

Gwen remembered how the thugs reacted when her saviors landed in front of her. Their eyes had gone wide, their skin paled to an almost paper white. They had encountered those people before, and they were _terrified_ of them. Which made Gwen wonder if these were people that she should actually look for. The leader _had_ told her to forget about them, about what had happened. Was it a good idea to do exactly what they didn’t want her to do? _Look_ for them?

But they had saved her. They knew martial arts, had performed moves that only masters could without hurting themselves. And the moves had been her sensei’s. They had the same fighting style as her teacher. Fast, quick, precise. She deserved to at least know their names.

_One more search_ , she told herself. _Just one more. If you can’t find anything, then give up. Do as they said, don’t look for them anymore_.

Gwen opened her laptop again, plucking a few pieces of trail mix from the bowl in her lap, and typed three words into the search bar: New York vigilantes. Then, she clicked on the “images” tab, and waited for the page to load.

Most of the images that popped up were only those of comic book superheroes or photos of cops that were being praised for their outstanding sense of selflessness. Gwen sighed as she scrolled through a few pages, almost ready to give up. Then, a grainy thumbnail caught her eye. She furrowed her eyebrows, and clicked on the image to enlarge it.

The photo was even grainier enlarged, but Gwen recognized a few features. The most prominent was that the building the four fuzzy figures were standing on was the same one that was directly across April’s apartment complex. The same one she had seen a shadowy figure watching her as she fell asleep. The second most prominent feature was that all of the figures had the same inhuman features that Gwen’s saviors did; the humped back, the strange hairless heads, and the oddly shaped limbs.

Gwen sucked in a quick breath, and leaned back onto the bed’s headboard. So the people that had saved her had also been watching her when she first arrived in New York. Sure, that wasn’t creepy at _all_. So what was she going to do about it? The first thought that came to mind was get in trouble again and hope that they would save her in time. But Gwen knew that if the Purple Dragons caught up with her again, they would do much worse than just _attempt_ to kill her. So, the most obvious choice was to...

Was to what? Stake out the building across the street? She could be out there for hours, who knows who could find her? The police might get called, too.

_Not if I’m careful_ , Gwen thought to herself.  _But the trouble will be getting out without being caught_.

Could she count on April being gone again? The redhead had been going out every night since the attack, as usual. But things could change. April could stay home, or come home too early while Gwen was sneaking out. And the only way out of the apartment that wasn’t the front door was the fire escape, and the only way to that was through April’s room.

_Enough. Stop worrying. Do it or you’ll regret it forever_ , Gwen chastised herself, and made up her mind. April, home or not, she was going to find out who these people were.

***

Night finally fell, and Gwen dressed in a pair of dark jeans, a black hoodie and her combat boots. April had left, just as Gwen had expected. Mr. O’Neil had gone to the lab again, and probably wouldn’t be home until late at night. Before leaving, she glanced out her window towards the building. She saw nothing, but her gut told her that something was there, watching her from the shadows.

“Alright,” she whispered, turning away from the window. “It’s now or never.”

After a quick glance around the living room to make sure that she hadn’t missed either of the O’Neils come in, she hurried into April’s room, shutting the door behind her. It was dark, and Gwen made sure that she wouldn’t trip over anything she couldn’t see. April had a keen eye, so if anything was out of place, she would know. Gwen slipped her fingers underneath the window, and pushed it open, surprised that it didn’t squeal like her own window did. The night air was muggy and humid, telltale signs of a coming storm. With one last glance over her shoulder, Gwen shimmied through the window and shut it behind her, her feet hitting the metal fire escape with a dull clanging sound.

Okay. So that was easier than she expected. Gwen looked around at the street below her, making sure that no one was out for a midnight stroll. When she was sure no one was out, she made her way to the ground, jumping the ladder in one go and landed softly on the ground. She sprinted across the street, keeping between the streetlights so she would be in the shadows, and swung up onto the other building’s fire escape. Her footsteps echoed with the same dull metallic thud, which made her wince every time she took a step.

Finally, she reached the rooftop. She stood up straight, chin held high and fists clenched at her sides, and walked towards the center of the roof before stopping. Almost immediately, she felt the familiar tingling sensation beginning at the base of her neck, and shivered as it traveled all the way down to her tailbone. They were there, watching her. Maybe all five of them. Gwen sucked in a deep breath, knowing that if she made one wrong move, it would be the end of her.

“I know you’re there!” she called, her voice echoing into the night. She spun in a slow circle, trying to find any sign of her watchers. “I can feel you watching me! Come out, I just want to talk.”

There was no sound, no rustle of movement. But Gwen knew they were there. She could feel them watching her. She took a couple steps toward a cluster of metal boxes that were screwed to the rooftop, trying to see any darker shapes against the already dark night.

“I know you’re there!” she repeated, and there was a small rustle of something shifting against the gravel rooftop. She looked around, trying to see if there was anything she could throw to scare them out of hiding. A rather large piece of rock lay by her right foot, and she bent down to pick it up. She gripped it tightly for a moment, then aimed for the cluster of metal boxes.

“Come out!” she said loudly, and threw the rock, expecting it to hit one of the boxes or just land pathetically against the rooftop.

“Ow!”

Gwen froze as the voice exclaimed, the sound of the rock hitting flesh and bone making her blood run cold. She had hit one of them. She hadn’t meant to actually _hit_ one of them! Her heart started racing. They were going to kill her now, she could feel it in her bones.

Then, the feeling of cold steel being pressed against her neck made Gwen freeze. Her breath caught in her throat, and her blood ran cold.

_This is it_ , she thought. _They’re going to kill me. I’m so sorry, April._

“ _Big. Mistake_.” A voice whispered into her ear, and the blade that was pressed against her throat was pushed tighter against her skin. Gwen took a deep breath, and let her eyes roam up to the sky, wanting the final thing she saw to be the stars shining in the sky.

“Wait!”

A flash of familiar ginger hair flew into Gwen’s line of sight, and she lowered her eyes in surprise. Her eyes widened as she realized who the young woman with flaming red hair and the bright yellow t-shirt was. April stood a few feet away, one arm outstretched as if she was going to grab Gwen out of her captor’s hold.

“Leo, let her go,” April said, voice steady and calm despite how pale her skin had gone. “She’s good, she’s not going to hurt anybody.”

“She threw a rock at Mikey.” Leo insisted, unmoving in his hold on her.

“Do you think she knew he was there?” April asked, gesturing behind her towards the cluster of metal boxes. “Come on, Leo. I trust her. Let her go.”

There was a moment’s hesitation, then the blades were gone. Gwen reached up and felt her neck, but there was no blood. She sighed with relief, her hands and knees beginning to shake.

“I’m _so_ sorry, Gwen,” April said, taking a couple steps forward. “They’re really suspicious about-”

“Is this what you do at night?” Gwen interrupted, her voice shaky and hoarse. It was all she could do to keep her legs from giving out. “Run with vigilantes?”

April blinked, looking like she was trying to find an explanation that would calm Gwen down. “Well, yeah but-”

“Does your dad know about this?” Gwen asked, taking a couple steps forward. The shock had gone. Now, it was only replaced by anger. Anger, and worry. “Does he know that you hang out with people like this? April, do you _know_ what they did to the people that attacked me?”

“Hey, we saved your life!” a voice shouted, but someone shushed him.

Gwen ignored him, and continued speaking. “Those Purple Dragons were terrified of these guys! They ran as fast as they could away from the alley! And they-” Gwen stopped, her eyes catching April reach up to rub at her forearm. Her eyes narrowed, and saw that there was a bandage on it, exactly in the same place as the masked woman had gotten cut. Then, Gwen remembered that April had been messing with that same spot when she had come home from the attack.

“It was you,” she breathed. “You were there. You were with them when they saved me.”

April grit her teeth and nodded. “Yes, I was. I should have told you-”

“Are you freaking KIDDING me?” Gwen shouted. “You’re damn right you should have told me! I’ve been living with you for a whole year! You hid these guys from me for a whole freaking year! And to top it off, you invited me into your home for the summer, and then you don’t even tell me when you leave? Where you go? Some host you are, O’Neil!”

April’s face grew red, and her fists clenched into fists. “You think I wanted to lie to you? You think I wanted to keep this from you? I can’t tell people about this, Gwen! Not only could I endanger people I care about, but the guys would get taken away!”

“Oh, sure, don’t tell because you’ll endanger people. Just in case you forgot, I almost got killed by the Purple Dragons because I went out alone at night! You and I were supposed to go have fun! And what were you doing instead? Running with _VIGILANTES_!”

“YES! I DIDN’T GO OUT WITH YOU THAT NIGHT!” April shouted, her red hair flying in the wind. “I’M SORRY, OKAY? I SHOULD HAVE CALLED, I SHOULD HAVE SAID SOMETHING!” then, she took a deep breath, and stepped back a pace. “I promise, Gwen. I will tell you everything now. But we have to get to a safe place before I do.”

“No.” Leo said from behind Gwen, and his tone of voice made a shiver run down her spine. “No way, April.”

April crossed her arms over her chest, narrowing her eyes over Gwen’s shoulder. “And why not? She deserves to know.”

“I don’t trust her. We can’t know if she won’t just turn around and report us to the nearest news agency.”

Gwen huffed, and turned around, ready to spout off at whoever this “Leo” was, then froze. What stood before her, whatever he was, wasn’t human. Far from it. Instead, a tall, green-skinned, man-like turtle towered over her, his blue eyes staring harshly down at her behind his equally blue mask. She took a couple steps back, her eyes widening as she took in the sight.

“You’re...you’re...”

“A freak?”

Gwen spun, and let out a little yelp as she saw three more turtles had appeared. The closest one wore a red mask, and was glaring at her with his arms crossed over his plastron. The tallest stood next to April, protectively hovering over her, and he wore a purple mask. The last one, the shortest with an orange mask, was the only one smiling. He rubbed the top of his head, and Gwen realized that he had been the one her rock had struck.

“Turtles,” Gwen finished, sucking in a shaky breath through her mouth. “Giant...turtles.”

“April,” Leo said, sheathing his swords and taking a step towards the redhead. “Splinter wouldn’t want us to bring a complete stranger into the lair. She could jeopardize our entire existence.”

April rolled her eyes, an exasperated sigh leaving her lips. “We brought Casey in, and he’s done a pretty good job keeping the secret.”

“That’s completely different.”

“Is it?” April asked, taking a step forward towards Leo. “Or are you just afraid that-”

Gwen let out a low sigh and turned away from the group, trying to block out the arguing. To be honest, she could care less if any of them trusted her. She had done nothing wrong. Sure, she had gone against what they told her to not do, but could they blame her? If they wanted to leave her, or take her to their lair, or whatever it was, she wasn’t going to fight. She had done enough fighting already.

Something moving in the distance caught her eye. She squinted, and tried to make April and Leo’s arguing fade into the distance so she could focus on whatever was getting closer. She moved to the rooftop’s edge, and raised an eyebrow. It was a group of people; maybe eight or nine of them. And they were running, jumping across the gaps between the buildings in well timed leaps. Whoever they were, they weren’t stargazers. They didn’t look like Purple Dragons, either.

“Hey,” Gwen said, trying to get someone’s attention. No one seemed to hear her. “Hey!” she repeated, turning away from the group of people to focus on April and the turtles. Still, no one heard her. She clenched her fists, glaring at the group, and took a deep breath.

“ _HEY_!”

The arguing stopped, and the turtles and April turned to her, expressions of surprise, annoyance, and confusion written on their faces.

“What?” the red-masked turtle snapped.

Gwen gestured over her shoulder to the approaching group of people, a sense of unease settling into her stomach. “There’s a group of people coming towards us...”

Leo’s gaze followed Gwen’s finger, and his entire body tensed. “Foot,” he growled, and turned to the red-masked turtle. “Raph, take Gwen. We have to get her out of here.”

Raph growled, and turned to glare darkly at Gwen. She took a step back, afraid that he was going to lash out at her. Then, his arms flashed out, wrapping around her waist. She yelped as she was lifted into the air, and then was thrown over Raph's shoulder.

“Don’t. Move.” Raph growled, and the next thing she knew, Gwen was being carried away from the building at high speeds, just as the approaching group of people reached the next building over. They weren’t regular people, she could tell that with one look. And they made the Purple Dragons look like a little playground gang.

What had she gotten herself into?


	6. Life for a Life

They hadn’t been running for long when Leo motioned for the group to stop. Raph put Gwen down a little too roughly, causing her to stumble a couple steps backwards. She glared at the turtle, not caring if he noticed or not. He glared right back, going as far as lifting his lip into a snarl.

“They won’t be too far behind,” Leo said, turning to stare in the direction they had just come from. “We’ll have to stand our ground.”

“But what about her?” the orange-masked turtle asked, pointing at Gwen. He sounded worried.

Leo turned to study Gwen for a couple moments, the harshness gone from his blue eyes, now replaced by curiosity and something else that Gwen couldn’t quite name.

“Hide her,” he said. “Make sure the Foot won’t be able to get to her.”

“What?” Gwen asked, her mouth dropping open in disbelief. “Excuse me, but I can handle myself. Did you not see how I managed against the Purple Dragons?”

“Yes, we did,” Leo said. “But these aren’t Purple Dragons. These are Foot soldiers that are highly trained in combat and will not hesitate to kill you. You will stay where we put you until this is all over.”

Gwen narrowed her eyes and crossed her arms over her chest angrily. “You’re not the boss of me, turtle-boy. If I want to fight, I’m going to fight.”

Raph snickered, and Leo turned to cast him a dark look before turning back to Gwen. She saw his hand twitch towards his katanas, and lifted her chin in defiance. He wasn’t going to scare her into hiding.

Leo turned to Raph, and jerked his chin towards Gwen in a silent command. Raph grinned, and began walking towards her. He reached out, grabbed her wrist, and began dragging her towards a little nook between a billboard and some piping. She began to protest, but she caught sight of the large group of Foot approaching them. How had they caught up so quickly?

“You’ll thank us later.” Raph said with a smirk, and pushed her down until she was crouching. “Stay.” He ordered, and hurried away to join his brothers.

The fighting started almost instantaneously. Gwen peeked out from her hiding spot with wide eyes, watching through a crack in the piping as the turtles and April darted this way and that, keeping their bodies between Gwen and the Foot. They were so fast, so precise, just like the first time they protected her. But this time, Gwen could see exactly what they were doing, who went where, who used what weapons...

_How can April fight with only a fan_? Gwen thought, watching her best friend throw aside a black clad ninja with the delicate looking weapon in her hand. But she seemed to be able to hold her own, not even faltering when two of the ninja charged her at the same time. April ducked, lashing out with one leg to trip one ninja, then spun in a quick circle that brought her back up into a standing position, her fan quietly rustling with the quick movement. The second ninja lashed out with his fists, only to be blocked. April pulled her arm back, her hand formed into a point, and jabbed her fingers once, twice, three times into the man’s chest and abdomen. He doubled over, a grunt leaving his lungs. This opening was obvious, even to Gwen, and she couldn’t help the small grin that tugged on the corners of her lips as April’s knee shot up into the ninja’s nose.

That was when Gwen noticed the ninja that April had tripped. He had landed just a few feet away from her, sprawled unceremoniously on the ground. But he wasn’t just laying there. His head was lifted into the air, and his strange bug eyes were staring right at her. Gwen froze, her muscles going so tense in her current position that it instantly began to hurt.

_If I stay still_ , she thought, even though she was just trying to humor herself, _maybe he won’t notice me_.

It might have been a few seconds, or it could have been an eternity, but Gwen and the Foot ninja just stayed where they were, frozen and staring at each other. Gwen’s mind was racing. Could she run? Could jump the gap between the the two buildings? Or should she stay where she was and risk getting attacked again?

Before she could make her decision, the ninja shot up onto his feet, reaching into his belt for some hidden weapon that Gwen couldn’t see. Without even thinking, she planted both her hands onto the top of a large pipe in front of her, and heaved herself up and over, going into a handstand and flipping head-over-heels just as the throwing knife hit the spot she had just been occupying.

The moment Gwen’s feet hit the ground again, she heard the ninja behind her climb over the piping. She counted the footfalls behind her until the ninja was within reach, then spun on her left foot, swinging her right leg around until her heel caught the ninja on the chin. His head snapped to the side, and he stumbled back for a moment, reeling from her attack. Gwen brought her hands up, dropping into an offensive stance as she waited for the ninja to recover. His hands lashed out, turning into claws as if he was going to wrap them around her neck.

Gwen jumped backwards, once again lashing out with her foot so she could kick him in the chest. He grabbed her by the ankle and twisted, making her spin to keep her leg from dislocating or being wrenched. After a quick moment of consideration, Gwen let herself drop to the ground, using the sudden change in position to make the ninja lose his balance. She hooked her other foot behind the ninja’s leg and pulled, tripping him again.

“Gwen!” Gwen looked up, and saw April kick aside another ninja before sprinting towards her.

“No!” Gwen shouted, quickly standing before her own opponent could get the upper hand again. “I’ve got this, April!”

That was when another body crashed onto Gwen’s back, causing her to stumble forwards a few steps under the sudden weight. Hands grabbed at her upper arms and wrists, her attacker trying to wrestle her to the ground. Gwen let out a shout and tried to throw her attacker off, kicking and craning her neck so she could bite at the hands.

Something hard came down on her head, sending a flash of pain through her skull and neck and causing her to see stars. Gwen instantly collapsed, groaning. She cracked her eyes open, trying to push herself up into a sitting position. A foot kicked her ribs, making her fall onto her side again.

“And stay down,” a voice hissed, and a pair of feet walked across her vision.

Gwen followed the pair of feet until the ninja stopped just a few feet away. She watched as he pulled a knife from his belt and weighed it in his hands. As the pain cleared from her head and her vision began to focus again, she watched the ninja raise the hand that held the blade, aiming it at someone. She followed the weapon’s trajectory, and saw Leo was the target. She would have yelled, would have warned him, but he was taking on three Foot at the same time. One of them _could_ get into the way of the blade and save him, but there was a small chance of that. They were all focused; their senses probably as sharp as the blade aimed at Leo.

Before Gwen could make the choice if she could warn Leo or see if one of the Foot would accidentally end up shielding him, the other Foot reeled his arm back, readying himself to throw the knife.

“No!” Gwen shouted, and pushed herself up. She ran towards Leo just as the knife was thrown, pushing past April as she went, not stopping to see if the redhead stumbled or not. Just as Leo looked up, his gaze locked with Gwen’s, and she jumped.

The blade pierced her side, sending wave after wave of white hot pain coursing through her body. She hit the ground hard and stayed there, her mouth open in a silent shriek of pain. She let one hand clutch at her ribs, the blade still embedded into her flesh. She felt something warm and wet spread across her fingers, and through her fading vision, she lifted her hand and saw blood staining her fingers.

That was when sound finally made it’s way from her throat and into the air. She didn’t scream, she didn’t let out a choked sob. No, the sound that left her lips was the sound of someone choking on air, gasping for breath at the same time as if she had been trapped underwater for too long without air. The force of the air being sucked into her lungs caught in her throat, and she began coughing.

_This is how I die_ , Gwen thought as she continued to cough, causing more pain to jolt her nerves. _I’m going to bleed to death_.

“GWEN!”

Hands suddenly grabbed at her, turning her over onto her back. April’s face swam in front of Gwen’s eyes. Her eyes were wide and her skin was as white as paper. Then, four green figures appeared behind her. The turtles were still there? Where were the ninja?

“She doesn’t look so good,” a voice said faintly.

“We have to get her back to the lair.”

“Just hold on, Gwen,” April said as a pair of strong arms lifted Gwen into the air, cradling her against something hard and warm. “You’re going to be okay.”

Gwen could only nod as darkness began to fill her vision. The last thing she saw was a pair of blue eyes behind and equally blue mask, looking like they were pleading with her to stay alive.


	7. Home Sweet Home

“ _Beautiful child, you have a gift_...”

“ _Sensei, are you sure you want to teach her_?”

“ _I am sorry, Gwendolyn...I should not have let this happen_.”

Consciousness returned slowly to Gwen, like waking up spent more energy than her body could make up for. She struggled to pry her eyes open, eyebrows twitching as the pain in her side throbbed in time with her heartbeat. Well, at least she wasn’t dead. Death didn’t have pain. And she was pretty sure it didn’t smell like chemicals...or pizza.

Where was she? Even if she couldn’t see, she could still hear, feel and smell. The air felt damp and chilly, but the heavy blankets that she was covered with were thick and warm. There were tiny sounds that filled the air; small beeps, little whirrs every now and then permeated the air and reached her ears. Gwen tried opening her eyes again, and moved her arms so she could attempt to sit up, but the ache in her ribs proved too much, so she settled back down onto whatever she was lying on with a quiet groan.

“Take it easy,” a voice said from somewhere to her left. “You’re still kind of weak.”

Gwen groaned again, and was finally able to open her eyes. Everything was blurry, but she could make out the large green blur that stood in front of her. She blinked a couple times, and was able to clear her vision to see that the turtle with the purple mask was standing in front of her. He looked worried, but he also looked like he was hanging back, seeming like he was afraid of her.

“Where am I?” she said, glancing around at the room. It looked like a lab of some sort. Or a garage. Or a mix of both. There were spare parts piled in corners, and beakers of colored liquids lined shelves and counters.

The turtle gestured at the room around them, a little nervous grin on his face. “Well...this is my lab. It kind of serves at the medical bay when we need it.”

Medical bay. That’s right. She had gotten hurt. Badly, if Gwen remembered right. She looked down, and saw that her top had been stripped from her body, leaving her in her sports bra, and someone had switched her jeans for a pair of sweats. Pristine white gauze had been expertly wrapped around her ribs. She could see small spots of blood where her bodily fluids had leaked through, but it didn’t seem to be a lot. “

You’re lucky that we got you here when we did,” the turtle continued. “You had lost almost a pint and a half of blood. Thank goodness I had some O negative stashed away, or you’d be a lot worse for wear.”

Gwen nodded, and looked up at the purple-clad terrapin. “I’m sorry...I don’t think I ever caught your name.”

The turtle chuckled, shaking his head. “Yeah, fighting the Foot Clan never leaves room for introductions.” He smiled, and placed a three-fingered hand on his upper plastron. “I’m Donatello. But everyone calls me Donnie.”

Gwen nodded, sitting up a little further in an attempt to look around. “I’m Gwen, if you didn’t catch April’s screaming at me.”

Donnie laughed, and three more people walked in; April, Raph, and the orange-masked turtle.

“Dude, she’s up already?” the turtle asked, his blue eyes wide behind his bright mask. “I could have sworn she would’ve been out for at least a few more hours.”

“Gwen’s more resilient than you think, Mikey,” April told the turtle, and walked over to Gwen with a warm smile on her face. “Hey. How are you feeling?”

Gwen shrugged. “Fine, I guess. I’m sore, and a little light headed, but I’ve never been stabbed before, so I don’t know what to expect.” She glanced around again. “Where are we? Donnie said we’re in his lab, but...exactly _where_ are we?”

April pursed her lips, then glanced up at Donnie. He shrugged, then nodded his head once. April nodded in return, then turned back to Gwen. “You’re in the sewers, Gwen,” April said softly. “It’s the only safe place we have right now.”

Gwen raised an eyebrow, hardly believing her friend. “The _sewers_. You’re telling me that there are four giant, man-like turtles living directly under New York, and nobody knows but you?”

April nodded. “My dad, too. And there’s another guy, Casey Jones...but yeah. Nobody knows but us. Nobody can know.”

Gwen’s half-disgusted, half-suspicious expression dropped from her face. She looked around at the three turtles, who all wore different expressions of either worry, excitement, or disgruntlement.

“I won’t tell anybody,” she said softly. “I promise.”

“It’s not as easy as that.”

The group looked up, and Gwen saw Leo standing in the doorway. His arms were crossed, and he was watching her with a calculating expression that made her feel like he was seeing directly through her body to her soul.

_Who knows_ , she thought. _They are giant ninja turtles. It wouldn’t be surprising if he could do that_.

“How is she?” Leo asked, walking a few steps further into the lab. He turned his gaze to Donnie, a brow ridge rising behind his mask in anticipation.

“Vitals are stable, and she seems to be coherent,” Donnie said, looking down at a clipboard. “No sign of concussion, but she might have some headaches for the next few days. And the stab wound she suffered should be healed up in the next few weeks,” he listed off all of his diagnoses, gesturing to Gwen a couple times.

Leo nodded, then turned to glance at Gwen. She felt pinned to where she sat as he stared at her, like his eyes had glued her to the spot. She felt like he was reading her entire being, trying to find out if he could trust her, or if she should be eliminated. It unnerved her.

“If she’s able, Splinter would like to speak with her.” That was it. Leo turned on his heel, and walked out of the room, closing the sliding door behind him with a soft thud.

“Who’s Splinter?” Gwen asked as the three other turtles started moving towards the door as well.

April gestured for Gwen to swing her legs over the small cot, and helped her to stand. Gwen winced as her friend’s arm gently slid around her bare ribs, her wound throbbing painfully underneath the bandages.

“He’s their father, in a sense.” April said as she helped Gwen out of the lab and into a larger room. “He raised them from the time they were mutated, then trained them. He’s...he’s a good person.” April glanced over at her friend. “Just try not to freak out when you see him.”

“Why?” Gwen questioned, looking around at the large room. It looked like a fairly normal home, with a kitchen, living room, and a hallway that lead down to what must have been bedrooms.

“He’s not...well, he doesn’t look like us.”

Gwen stopped walking for a moment, eyes locking with April’s. “Is he like them?”

April smiled. “You’ll just have to wait and see.”

Gwen looked around as April helped her into a dimly lit, dojo-like room. On one wall there were weapons hung on racks or shelves. On the far side of the room was a large tree that grew around a small koi pond. It reminded her of the small dojo that she used to train in; right down to the tatami mats that lay on the floor.

“Master Splinter?” April asked, letting go of Gwen so she could stand by herself. “Sensei, Gwen is awake...you wanted to speak to her?”

Gwen heard someone breath deeply, and looked back towards the tree. A figure sat underneath it, facing the tree and koi pond. Gwen watched as it stood, revealing an even less-human figure than the turtles. The figure turned, revealing a human-like rat wearing a Japanese-styled robe. His eyes studied Gwen for a moment, and then he bowed.

“ _Hajimemashite_ , Gwendolyn. I am Master Splinter.”

Gwen’s eyes widened a fraction, and out of instinct and despite the pain the movement caused, she bowed as well. “ _O ai dekite kōeidesu_ , Splinter-sama. Thank you for bringing me into your home and taking care of me.”

There was a slight pause where Splinter watched Gwen for a moment, and then a smile spread across his muzzle. “Your Japanese is nearly flawless, Gwendolyn. Do you take lessons?”

Gwen shook her head, smiling. “No. I was taught by my own sensei since I was eleven...I’m a little rusty, though. It’s been a while since I’ve spoken Japanese.”

Splinter nodded, stroking the beard-like fur that hung from his chin as he hummed in acknowledgment.

“While you were asleep, my sons and April spoke to me of what happened on the rooftop. That you and April argued.”

The rat’s tone of voice made Gwen feel immediate shame. His gaze made her feel like she was a child again, and he was about to scold her. No one had made her feel this way since her own sensei. “Yes...she and I argued...I was upset that she hadn’t told me about the turtles. I know now that she did what she did to keep them safe...but I wanted to know why she was gone all the time. I felt...left out when she disappeared without saying a word to me after she had invited me into her home for the summer.” Gwen bowed her head, ashamed at her past behavior now that she was recalling it. “I regret my actions, now that I know the entire situation.”

Splinter nodded, his eyes narrowed as he studied her. “And yet you saved my son. You jumped in front of the blade and gave your life for his.” He tilted his head, one of his ears twitching. “Why?”

Gwen blinked, and glanced over to where the turtles and April had congregated. They all watched her with varying degrees of curiosity and encouragement. Leo’s gaze hadn’t left her since she had walked into the room. She could practically hear what he was thinking. _Yes, why did you save me? You don’t even know me_.

“I...I saved him because he and his brothers saved me,” Gwen started, fiddling with the ties on the sweats. “It felt right to do so...and...” she glanced over at April, who smiled. Gwen returned her smile, and let out a long breath she hadn’t known she had been holding. “They make April happy. Happier than I could ever make her whenever I tried to cheer her up. I could never forgive myself for not trying, not when I’m able and capable of defending myself and others.”

Splinter nodded, his eyes now gleaming with some unsaid emotion. “I admire your bravery, Gwendolyn. Not many people would have jumped in front of a blade to save someone, let alone a mutant. But I do wonder,” he shifted, tilting his head again. “How long have you been studying martial arts? From my son’s report, you seemed to be able to hold your own quite easily until you were outnumbered.”

“Gwen studied for eight years.” April butted in. “I’ve seen videos of her at competitions. She’s amazing.”

Gwen blushed, not used to the praise. “It’s nothing special, really. I’ve known people that have trained for longer than I have. Eight years is nothing.”

“Do not discredit your abilities, Gwendolyn,” Splinter said, shaking his head. “Eight years is not nothing when you have continued to remember what you have learned, and use it for good.” Splinter stood, then gestured for April and the turtles to stand as well. “Gwendolyn seems to be one of the few people that we can trust, my sons. But I will consider what I have heard today.” He turned to April. “Take her home, April. She needs to heal, and to rest.”

April nodded, and Gwen bowed once more. “ _Arigato_ , Splinter-sama,” she said. “I owe you and your sons my life.”

“It is I who must be thanking you, Gwendolyn.” Splinter replied. “Leonardo would not be in the condition he is in now if not for you.”

Gwendolyn smiled, bowed once more, and let April help her out of the room.

***

“Do what Master Splinter said and rest, okay?” April asked as she helped Gwen into the house. “It’ll take a couple weeks for that wound to heal completely. And even then you’ll still be pretty sore.”

Gwen nodded. She hadn’t spoken since they left the lair. She was too ashamed to. Now that she had relived the past few months with her roommate, and recounting it to Splinter, she felt guilty about how she had acted. She felt like she had become that friend that was always up in someone else’s business, wanting to be a bigger part of their friend’s life than they deserved. And Gwen knew she didn’t deserve April’s friendship. Not anymore.

“April?” Gwen asked quietly as they made their way into the guest room. “I want to apologize.”

“For what?” April asked, helping Gwen sit on the bed before moving to the dresser. She began rummaging around, most likely looking for some pajamas that Gwen could wear without irritating her wound.

“For everything. For how I’ve acted towards you for the past year, especially the last few weeks.” Gwen sighed, running a hand through her hair. “I’d try to make excuse for my actions, but there is none. I was jealous, I was worried. That’s it...and now that I know the truth, I just feel silly. I’m...I’m sorry.”

April turned around, a pair of pajama pants and a tank top in her hands. She locked eyes with Gwen for a moment, then sighed. “I’m sorry, too.” She walked over to the bed and sat down next to Gwen. “I should have told you sooner about the boys. I trusted you, I knew you could keep my secret. But there was always a little piece of me warning me against it. And I feel horrible about it now. I know that I can trust you. Splinter knows it, too. He just has to think it over.”

Gwen nodded. “I understand. I won’t ever tell, you can count on that.”

April smiled, then gently hugged her. Gwen hugged back, feeling like two tons had been lifted from her shoulders. “Come on, let’s get you dressed,” April said, and helped Gwen stand.

After Gwen had changed and had crawled into bed, she stared out her window for a few moments, watching the moon and stars slowly crawl across the sky. A little blur of movement caught her eye, and she glanced down to see one of the boys watching her from the building across the street. She smiled a little, not feeling like she was in danger any more. With this new life, with this huge secret she held, she felt like she had her own, special guardian.


End file.
